Love, Wallace Cup Style
Chapter 2: Happy Reunion
Morning had arrived over Lake Valor much quicker than anyone had expected; as the colour of the sky started to change from dark blue to a combination of sky blue and orange, the early morning sun started to rise over the horizon. Inside the room of the Pokemon Centre that Ash, Dawn and Brock were staying in, Ash slowly opened his eyes and had a look through the window to find that it was morning, and a smile of excitement quickly showed on his face before he sat up and turned his head to the others. "Hey, guys! Wake up! It's morning!" Ash called. Upon hearing his voice, Pikachu opened his eyes as he was lying curled up at the foot of Ash's bed before letting out a yawn, while Dawn and Brock started to wake up as well with Dawn rubbing one of her eyes before she was able to open them.
"Ash… what's going on? Why are you waking us up so early?" Dawn asked. She then showed an expression of surprise as she started to realise that there was something she was forgetting about… before she slowly turned her glance up to have a look at her hair to discover that it had gone all over the place while she was asleep. The second she took notice of, Dawn let out a scream of alarm. "Aaaah! My hair's a complete mess! I can't go out with it looking like this!" Dawn cried. Without a moment to spare, she quickly jumped on her feet and rushed over to grab her bag and find her hairbrush so she could start fixing it. As this was happening, Ash and Brock simply stared at her in surprise before showing matching smiles of amusement, aware of just how well Dawn liked to take care of her hair in the morning. Brock then turned his head to Ash, as he seemed to know the reason for Ash's sudden burst of energy this early in the day.
"I'm guessing someone is looking forward to getting to see May?" Brock asked, figuring that this might be the case as he remembered Ash's excitement about her call the previous night.
Ash promptly nodded in confirmation at this question. "That's right! We need to get ready so we can meet her at the port. So what are we waiting for?" Ash asked, before jumping up out of his bed as he was ready to get going. He then turned his head to see Pikachu run over to him before climbing up on his shoulder. "You ready to get going, Pikachu?" he asked.
"(I sure am, Ash!)" Pikachu replied, nodding in agreement with an enthusiastic smile on his face. So with this, after Dawn had finished cleaning up her hair from the mess it was after she had woken up, the group started to make their way out of the room to start getting ready before they set towards the port to meet up with May.
A little later, the group had gathered at Port Valor and they were waiting for the boat to arrive; Brock was keeping an eye out while Dawn was waiting with him with Piplup alongside her, and Ash and Pikachu were both sitting on the edge of the lighthouse stand together so they could get a closer view of the boat once it arrived. As they were waiting, Dawn knelt down to Piplup's height and turned her glance down to him, while he turned around to face her. "Isn't this exciting, Piplup? We're going to meet the Coordinator that Ash and Brock used to travel around with." Dawn commented. Piplup showed an eager smile and nodded in agreement; he was looking forward to this just as much as Dawn was. With everything Ash had told him and Dawn about her, she had to be someone amazing.
Meanwhile, out on the ocean, there was a ferry on a route towards Port Valor. Inside her room, May had just finished getting ready to go and she was now brushing her hair for a final touch-up. Once her preparations were complete, May placed the hairbrush down on the small desk and turned her glance up to the mirror to have a look at her reflection and she let out a cheerful sigh as she ran her fingers through her hair. "Ah… now I'm ready to go." May stated. She then reached over to grab her bandana to start tying it around her hair, but as she was busy with that, one of her Pokeballs that was sitting inside her bag suddenly opened by itself to reveal Beautifuly, who slowly hovered up into the air towards May as she was just finishing with tying up her bandana before landing on top of her head. As soon as she saw this in the mirror, May nearly jumped with an expression of surprise before turning her glance up to see Beautifly and quickly showed a bright smile. "Oh! Good morning, Beautifly. Excited to see Ash and the others too?" she asked. Beautifly nodded in confirmation before taking back up to the air, while May stood up from her seat and turned around to face her Pokemon. "So then what are we waiting for? We should start heading up to the top deck right now." May suggested. Beautifly nodded in agreement with this idea, so with this, she started to fly off ahead while May followed not too far behind her.
A little later, May had stepped out of her room and was on her way towards the top deck to keep a look out for Port Valor. As she arrived on the balcony area, she showed a smile of awe at the view around her before walking over to where the guard rail was and placed her hands on it while Beautifly hovered just over her head. "Look at that, Beautifly. In just a few moments we'll be at Lake Valor. I can't wait!" May cheered, showing an eager smile as she was looking forward to finally arriving at their destination. As Beautifly was listening to her Trainer, she turned her glance back up to have a look at the view in front of her. Just then, a few figures out in the distance managed to catch her attention, so without a moment to spare, she started to fly off ahead, much to May's surprise. "Beautifly, where are you going? Come back!" May called. However, her call fell on deaf ears as Beautifly started to make her way towards Port Valor.
Back at Port Valor, Ash and the others were still waiting for the ship to arrive, but they were met with a surprise to see something coming their way: it was Beautifly. The group quickly showed matching smiles of awe upon seeing her, while Ash jumped down from sitting on the edge of the lighthouse stand to have a closer look, with Pikachu following alongside him. "It's a Beautifly!" Ash exclaimed.
"It's beautiful…" Dawn commented, grabbing out her Pokedex to find out more, which showed a picture of Beautifly on the screen. "Beautifly, the Butterfly Pokémon, and the evolved form of Silcoon. When flowers are in bloom, Beautifly fly about gathering pollen." The Pokedex explained. As Dawn turned her glance up from her Pokedex screen, she and the others were met with a shock as Beautifly flew over to them before landing on top of Ash's head. When Ash turned his head up to notice this, he quickly started to show a smile as something started to seem familiar about her.
"Hang on a second… do I know this Beautifly?" Ash asked. As Brock turned his attention back to the ocean in front of them, a bright smile came to his face before he turned his head back to Ash. "I think you're about to find out." Brock replied.
As Ash turned his glance back to the view of the ocean to see what Brock was talking about, he could see not too far in the distance, a ship was coming closer into view as it was arriving at Port Valor, but his attention was quickly caught when he spotted someone standing on the balcony, and a smile of excitement quickly crossed his face. "Look! It's May!" Ash exclaimed. Pikachu quickly jumped up onto Ash's shoulder to see this for himself, and he quickly showed a bright smile and started to wave. "(Hi, May! It's great to see you!)" Pikachu called, even though he knew that May couldn't hear him just yet.
Sure enough, standing on the balcony and waving to them as she was holding onto the guard railing was none other than May, and she had a smile of excitement on her face that seemed to match Ash's. "Yoo-hoo! Hey, guys! Long time no see!" May called; now she couldn't wait to get off this boat and finally meet up with her friends again. Thankfully, that opportunity came sooner than she was expecting as the ship pulled in Valor Port, and as people were starting to get off as they had arrived at their destination, May was one of the first as she quickly rushed down the ramp with two full shopping bags in both of her hands and once she had arrived at the bottom and now at Port Valor, she turned to face the others with an eager smile. "Wow, hey, guys! It's so good to see you again." May stated. While Ash could only stare in amazement upon seeing her, Brock was the first to speak up as he nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, it's good to see you too, May. It's really been a while since we've seen each other, huh?" Brock asked. As May nodded in agreement, Dawn slowly made her way over to her with a smile of excitement on her face upon seeing her. "Wow… so you're May? It's so nice to finally meet you! My name's Dawn." Dawn stated. She then turned her glance down to notice Piplup running over to May and waving to her. May showed an expression of surprise seeing him before her smile returned and she turned her glance back to Dawn.
"It's nice to meet you too, Dawn. I'm guessing this little fella down here is your partner Pokemon?" May asked, looking down at Piplup, to which Dawn nodded in confirmation. "Yep, that's right! This is Piplup. He and I have been travelling together since we started our journey here in Sinnoh." Dawn explained. May felt her smile grow brighter in response, and she turned her glance down to Piplup before placing her shopping bags down on the ground to pick him up.
"Well, it's really nice to meet you, Piplup. I'm guessing you've really been keeping Dawn company on her journey, huh?" May asked. Piplup showed a confident smile before nodding in confirmation. "(That's right! She usually doesn't go anywhere without me.)" Piplup replied. He then promptly hopped out of May's arms to run back over to Dawn while May watched in surprise. While this was happening, May turned her head to notice Beautifly still sitting on top of Ash's head and showed a smile of amusement before picking up her shopping bags and walking over to the two.
"There you are, Beautifly. I had a feeling that you would recognise Ash first when we arrived. But next time, could you let me know when you're about to do something like this?" May suggested. Beautifly slowly nodded in understanding, since she had a feeling that May might have gotten a bit concerned about why she was acting the way she did. So with this, she hopped off Ash's head as May bent down to put one of her shopping bags down again to find Beautifly's Pokeball before returning her inside it. After that was taken care of, May turned her attention to Ash with a big smile. "Hi, Ash! Hi, Pikachu! Sorry I kept you guys waiting for me. How have you been?" she asked. Since Ash was still unable to say anything at the moment, Pikachu spoke up in response.
"(Hey, May! We've been great. It's been quite a rollercoaster for us in Sinnoh so far.)" Pikachu explained; there was a lot that he figured that May should know about since they arrived. May showed an eager smile at this statement and she nodded in understanding.
"Well, that's good to hear! I can't wait to hear all about it." May replied. As Pikachu nodded in agreement, May finally turned her attention to Ash as he slowly started to show a big smile once he was starting to realise that she was really standing in front of him. "So, Ash, I hear that you've been up to a lot since I left. I guess that means I'll have a lot to listen to, and probably so much that I've missed out on." May commented. However, she was met with a surprise as Ash slowly walked up to her… before throwing his arms around her in a tight embrace, causing her to drop the shopping bags she was holding in shock. As May simply stared in shock and blinked a few times as she was trying to register just what she was seeing, she slowly turned her glance to Ash in concern. "Ash? Are you okay?" she asked, as she was starting to wonder what had gotten into him.
"Yeah… I'm okay, May. But this is so amazing; you're really here. I really missed you…" Ash said, feeling his smile slowly growing brighter as this was finally catching up with him; May was back, even if it would only be a short while, and they were getting to finally spend time together just like they used to. But more importantly than that: she was back by his side. While this was happening, Pikachu was watching from Ash's shoulder and he started to show a big smile as he was watching the two. May stared in silence for a few moments before she felt a bright smile cross her face before she reached up to return Ash's embrace.
"Ash… I missed you too." May softly replied. While this was happening, Dawn and Brock were watching from behind the two and they both seemed to show differing reactions; Brock was simply staring in shock with his mouth wide open as he was struggling to register what he was seeing, while Dawn watched in surprise for a few moments before she felt a smile of excitement cross her face. After a few seconds passed, Ash and May let go of each other, with May reaching up to brush a few tears that had built up in her eyes away. "It feels so wonderful to see you again after such a while…" May softly stated. Ash simply nodded in agreement as he felt the same way; May always made him feel like he could accomplish anything, and now with her by his side, he was starting to experience that feeling start to return to him. After a few moments passed, May quickly showed an expression of shock as there was something she had completely forgotten about in her excitement to see everyone. "Oh! That reminds me! I almost forgot!" May exclaimed. Showing no hesitance, she rushed over to grab the shopping bags she brought along with her, while the others stared at her in surprise.
"Uh, May? What's with all the bags?" Brock asked; he had taken notice of the fact that she had been holding them, but he had completely forgotten about it until now. May turned her glance down to the bags in surprise for a few moments before she showed a bright smile as she turned her glance back up to the group.
"Oh, you mean these? I brought presents for everyone. I figured that since I was coming here, I should buy a few things to give you guys." May replied. So with this, she placed the bags down and started to search through them to find the items she was looking for while the others waited patiently for her. After a few seconds, May stood up as she was holding two presents in her hand, with one being larger than the other. "Ash, Brock, these are for you." May stated. Ash and Brock both showed matching grateful smiles before May handed one to each of them.
"Wow… they're for us? Thanks, May!" Ash happily stated. "Yeah, you really thought of everything before you got here." Brock agreed, nodding. So with this, the two started to open their gifts to see what they got: for Ash, he had a Teddiursa carving while Brock got a carving of Ursaring. As the two stared at their presents, Brock could only stare in confusion while Ash showed a smile of excitement.
"Thanks, May! This is awesome!" Ash exclaimed. "(Yeah!)" Pikachu agreed, happily nodding with a big smile on his face. Brock could only stare at his carving in confusion as this didn't seem to make sense to him. "Though, knowing what it's for would be good…" Brock uncertainly commented. May simply showed an eager smile hearing their responses before she reached back inside one of the bags to grab what looked like a small indigo coloured box before standing back up and turning around to face Dawn.
"And Dawn and Piplup, this one's for you. I hope you like it." May added. Dawn showed a bright smile upon seeing the box before taking it as May handed it to her.
"Oh, thank you! That's so sweet." Dawn commented. She then lifted the lid of the box to reveal a necklace with a Piplup charm in the centre, and she quickly showed a smile of awe. "Wow! It's adorable!" Dawn exclaimed. She then turned her glance up to May, beyond thrilled by the fact that she was finally getting a chance to meet her. "I still can't believe that I'm finally getting the chance to meet you, May! Ash told me a lot about you last night; he even said that people call you the Princess of Hoenn." Dawn explained. May showed an expression of surprise at this statement before she showed a shy smile in response.
"Wow… he really said that? How much did he tell you about me?" May asked. Dawn let out a giggle before giving her response. "Well, he didn't really give me all the background information. But he did tell me enough for me to know how a wonderful of a girl you are to him; you wouldn't believe how many nice things he had to say about you." Dawn replied. May could only stare in amazement hearing that Ash actually said that, before Ash then spoke up as he walked over.
"Yeah, that's right. May earned that title from winning all five Contest Ribbons in Hoenn and making it to the Grand Festival." Ash replied. He then turned his glance to May with a bright smile as he continued. "But if you ask me, I think May should be a real princess too; she does have the beauty and heart to match one." Pikachu quickly turned his head to Ash in amazement upon realising what he just heard his Trainer say, while May stared in shock for a few moments before she showed a bright smile as her cheeks started to turn red at the sound of the praise Ash was giving her.
"Aww, thank you, Ash! That's so sweet of you to say!" May cheered. Showing no hesitance on her part, she quickly gave Ash a big hug while he simply watched her with a big smile, knowing that he had the right choice of words there. Dawn and Pikachu simply watched the two with matching bright smiles as they were starting to think the same thing about the two. After a few moments, May let go of Ash before turning her glance up to him. "I guess we have Wallace to thank for me having the chance to see you guys again, huh?" May asked.
"Yeah, we sure do." Ash replied, nodding in agreement. As Dawn and Brock were watching them, Brock then spoke up. "So, May. Are you ready to compete the Wallace Cup?" he asked. May showed a smile of excitement before she nodded in confirmation.
"I sure am! I've been looking forward to competing in the Wallace Cup for quite a while, and as soon as I heard that it was taking place here in Sinnoh, I got here as soon as possible." May explained. She then showed a nervous smile as she remembered what that meant. "Of course, I had to leave the others behind in the process, but I'm sure they were okay with that…" May then added, letting out a nervous laugh at the fact that her own excitement led her to coming here on her own. The others simply nodded in understanding before Brock turned his head to the group.
"So, are we ready to get going then?" he asked. "Yeah!" The others replied, nodding in agreement with this idea. So with this, the group started to set off so they could make their way back to Lake Valor. While this was happening, the group didn't realise that they had three faces watching them; just not too far from their general area were the Rocket Trio, and they had been watching what was going on.
"Hey, now there's a face we haven't seen in a while. It's the Hoenn twerpette!" Meowth commented, showing an eager smile as he and the others had been listening in to their conversation. Jessie showed an expression of annoyance before crossing her arms.
"And from the looks of things, it sounds like she's here to compete in the Wallace Cup too. Well, I won't let her stop me from taking the top for myself!" Jessie stated. Just as she had finished speaking, Wobbuffet popped out of his Pokeball from behind the group and stated "Wobbuffet!", seemingly agreeing with Jessie.
"But the last we checked, the Wallace Cup doesn't start for at least another few days. So what could she be doing here this early?" James wondered, showing an expression of puzzlement as he was starting to wonder why May was here when the Wallace Cup wasn't even starting yet. Jessie turned her glance to him upon hearing this question before she stood up while James and Meowth watched her.
"Isn't the answer obvious? She's come early to get some training in and gain the upper hand over the rest of us. Well, we'll just see about that! I'm going to step up my training too, and make sure that I win the Wallace Cup and earn that special ribbon for myself!" Jessie stated, showing an expression of determination as she was ready to start stepping up if she wanted to be able to win the Wallace Cup. Wobbuffet happened to agree with her as he showed a big smile before replying "Wobbuffet!" James and Meowth both stared at her in surprise for a few moments before they showed matching smiles of excitement for her.
"We wouldn't expect anything less from our Jesselina!" James said. "That's right! We'll show them why you're the best!" Meowth agreed. As Jessie let out a laugh of excitement over her new plan, the three's celebration was rudely interrupted when they suddenly heard their stomachs start to growl, before they all let out sighs of dismay and sat back down on the ground.
"But maybe our first order of business should be looking for some good food, otherwise I won't have any energy for training…" Jessie sighed. "Good idea…" James and Meowth agreed, slowly nodding. "Wobba…" Wobbuffet then added, as he agreed with them as well.
Back with Ash and the others, the group were making their way up the staircase leading away from Port Valor. "So, May, what's Max been up to these days?" Ash asked. Dawn then showed a bright smile as she remembered that she had heard that name before when Ash told her and Brock about who had called the previous night.
"Oh, yeah! Max is your little brother, right?" she asked. May turned her head to Dawn and nodded in confirmation.
"That's right! Max has been doing great; he's been at work helping to take care of Dad's Pokemon. He's always talking about wanting to do it just like how he learnt from Brock. And needless to say, Dad's as proud as he can be!" May explained. As the others were listening to this, they all showed bright smiles of excitement.
"Well, that's nice to hear." Brock commented. "Yeah! Max was always watching Brock really closely in Hoenn." Ash agreed, promptly nodding as Pikachu turned his head to him while he was paying attention to this. "(That's right.)" Pikachu added, nodding as well. Dawn simply showed a smile of awe while she heard this.
"That's amazing!" Dawn stated. She then turned her head back to May since there was something she wanted to ask. "So, May, when did you arrive in Sinnoh?" she asked. The group had just arrived at the top of the staircase during their conversation and as they were walking, May turned around to face the others as she stopped.
"Oh, I got here a few days ago. There was something I really wanted to do first before I came here, so I stopped at Snowpoint City." May replied. The rest of the group quickly showed matching expressions of interest as they wanted what it was that May did while she was there. "Really? What did you do there?" Dawn asked.
May quickly showed an eager smile before she grabbed out one of her Pokeballs. "I'll show you! Now, Glaceon, on stage!" she replied. So with this, she threw the Pokeball up in the air, causing it to open and release a lovely light-blue coloured Pokemon that had two dark blue rhombus-shaped markings on her back, with the tip of her tail and her feet being the same colour, and what seemed to be a teal tuque on her head with two teal dangles, with one on each side of her head. As the group stared at her, they all showed matching expressions of amazement upon seeing her before Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and ran over to her to have a closer look.
"(Eevee, that's really you?)" Pikachu asked, showing a smile of awe upon seeing her. Glaceon turned her glance down to see Pikachu before she nodded in confirmation. "(Yes, it is! May evolved me while we were staying in Snowpoint City. What do you think?)" Glaceon asked in response. Pikachu slowly had a close look at her before turning his attention back to her with a big smile.
"(Wow, you look amazing! I think May made the right choice with which kind of evolution you were going to be.)" Pikachu commented. Glaceon showed a bright smile at Pikachu's response since she was really happy to see him say that, and figuring that maybe she should do this for old times' sake, she lunged forward to tackle Pikachu. Understandably, Pikachu was met with a shock as he landed on the ground before he was met with Glaceon looking down at him with a big smile, and he couldn't help but smile back. While the two were busy with all of that, Dawn knelt down to look at Glaceon and grabbed her Pokedex out of her bag to find out more.
"Glaceon, the Fresh Snow Pokémon and the evolved form of Eevee. Glaceon can freeze the fur on its body, and make it stick out like sharp needles." The Pokedex explained. As she looked at the Pokedex entry, Dawn turned her glance up to Glaceon with a big smile. "Oh, it's so cute!" Dawn exclaimed. Pikachu turned his glance up to Dawn and nodded in agreement before he sat up and started to shake his head; he had always considered Eevee to be cute, but now that he was seeing her like this, he thought she looked absolutely beautiful. May seemed to be feel the same way, as she showed a bright smile and nodded in agreement.
"Thanks! You see, over near Snowpoint City, there's a cave where a huge ice crystal causes Eevee to evolve." May explained. As Dawn stood up, that was when she started to put the pieces into place. "And that's where your Eevee evolved!" Dawn added. May promptly nodded in confirmation; that was indeed the case.
"Yeah, that's right! Since I was coming to Sinnoh anyway, I thought it would be great to return to the Johto Contests with a newly evolved Pokemon." May replied. While Pikachu and Glaceon had their heads turned up towards May while they were talking, they then turned their heads back down and couldn't help but smile at each other. Ash then showed an expression of surprise as he realised that since May was in Johto competing in the contests there, she had to have been busy at work to win her five ribbons.
"Hey, speaking of the Johto Contests, how many ribbons have you got so far?" Ash asked. May showed a bright smile as she was now eager to share this with them. "I've got three Ribbons now. You guys want to see?" May asked. As the group nodded, May reached over and opened her bag to grab out her Ribbon case, before she opened it up to show the three Ribbons in each of their slots, with the two bottom ones still being empty. As the group looked down at the Ribbons, Dawn showed a smile of awe.
"Wow… so those are real Johto ribbons… That's amazing, May! Great job!" Dawn cheered. Ash simply nodded in agreement, while Pikachu made his way back over to him before climbing up on his shoulder. "I'll say! It looks like you've been working harder than ever." Ash agreed. May let out a giggle in response before showing a nervous smile, since things hadn't exactly been easy for her in Johto.
"Thanks, guys. But… it hasn't really been an easy road for me in Johto. Drew and Harley are as strong as ever, and I've been having a lot of trouble with trying to beat either of them." May explained. The rest of the group could only stare in surprise once they heard this, realising just how difficult things had been for May ever since she left.
"Woah… really? Dawn hasn't exactly been having a good time herself recently." Brock commented. Dawn nearly jumped in shock once she heard Brock mention this, while May turned her head to Dawn in surprise.
"You've been having trouble too, Dawn?" she asked. Dawn let out a sigh as she knew that she was going to have to tell May this sooner or later before she nodded in confirmation. "Yeah, that's right… I've been in at least five Contests so far and I've only managed to win one of them. I even lost in the Appeal round twice in a row! I didn't have any idea of what I've been doing wrong, but then I realised that I've been trying too hard to make my Appeals flashy and exciting when I should be focusing more on my Pokemon. So now I've been taking some time to recharge and get my priorities in check." Dawn explained, feeling an expression of dismay cross her face as she could remember that infamous streak she was experiencing, and how she felt like she was letting her Pokemon down in the process. May could only listen in concern to this before she showed a reassuring smile.
"Hey, don't worry about it. Ever since I went to Johto, it's been one disaster after another for me, so I figured that competing in the Wallace Cup would be the perfect opportunity to get myself back in the Contest track. How about we both make this contest our comeback?" May suggested. Dawn showed a bright smile at this idea and nodded in agreement. "It's a deal!" she cheerfully replied.
While this was happening, Ash could only watch in worry as he was thinking over what May had told him and the others; she had been having trouble going up against Drew and Harley in Johto, when she had no such problems when she was with him. It was almost as if having him by her side gave her plenty of motivation and confidence to pull through, just like how having her by his side did the same for him. As he was thinking this over, Pikachu turned his head to him in concern. "(Ash?)" Pikachu asked, as he was wondering what Ash was thinking about.
"Pikachu… I was just thinking about how much trouble May's been having since she struck out on her own. She used to never have problems with taking on Drew and Harley, but now… now she's been struggling against both of them…" Ash quietly explained. Pikachu showed an expression of concern as he was listening to this, and he turned his glance down to think about why that could be, while Ash made his way over to May while she looked up to notice him. "Hey, May? Have things really been that bad with Drew and Harley?" Ash asked. May showed an expression of surprise hearing this question, before it was replaced with one of dismay as she slowly nodded.
"You know it… no matter how hard I try, I can never seem to beat either of them, even when I start to get the upper hand. I don't get it, though; I never had these kinds of problems in Hoenn or Kanto. But somehow… competing in Contests just doesn't feel the same without you being there. It was like seeing you watching me and cheering me on gave me the confidence I needed, and it felt like I could do anything. But without you with me in Johto, it just doesn't feel that way anymore. I really miss you being there for me, Ash. I know I should be able to find strength on my own, but having you by my side was all the strength I needed…" May quietly explained, an expression of immense dismay showing on her face as she remembered how she always felt like something was missing whenever she was competing in a Contest in Johto, and she knew full well what was missing: Ash being there to cheer her on and support her. Ash slowly turned his glance down as he was listening to what May was saying, and he simply nodded in understanding.
"I know what you mean. I've been having the same problems as well; while I feel like I've been doing great here in Sinnoh so far, it never really feels the same without you by my side. Having you travel with me was always one of the best parts of my adventure through Hoenn, and I really miss having you with me. When you were by my side, I always felt like I could take on any odds, no matter how impossible they seemed. But now that you're here in Sinnoh with us, even for this short while, we'll both be able to get back the confidence we surely missed when we were together. And I'm sure that taking place in the Wallace Cup will be just the thing you need to help you get back on track, and I know that it'll be the best thing for you because…" Ash then reached over to take May's hands in his, while she watched him in amazement, before he finished. "I'll be there to cheer you on, just like how I always used to."
May stared at Ash in silence for a few moments before she felt a bright smile slowly cross her face as she started to realise that he was right; she didn't have to worry about being in the Wallace Cup, because she now had him by his side again, and she would be able to hear his voice cheering her on just like how she always used to. "Thank you. Ash. I don't think I could ask for anything else." May replied. With this, she threw her arms around him while he watched her in silence for a few moments before he showed a bright smile and placed his arms around her to return her embrace. While this was happening, Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and ran over to Dawn and Brock so he could leave the pair alone, while the latter two were watching them. Once she noticed Pikachu standing with them, Dawn knelt down to him.
"Hey, Pikachu. Are you thinking what I'm thinking about them?" Dawn asked, pointing over to Ash and May. Pikachu turned his head up to her before he nodded in agreement. "(You bet I am.)" Pikachu replied. Dawn let out a giggle hearing that Pikachu was thinking the same thing, before the two of them turned their attention back to Ash and May as the two were starting to let go of each other. Just then, the silence was broken as Ash's stomach started to growl. The group all turned their heads to Ash in surprise before May showed a smile of amusement.
"Looks like some things never change." May cheekily commented. Ash was silent for a few moments before he showed a nervous smile and placed both of his hands on his stomach.
"I guess I have been kind of hungry for a while…" Ash nervously said. Dawn promptly turned her head to May as she placed her hands on her hips. "Well, since it's lunch time, we're probably all hungry." Dawn commented. May quickly showed a bright smile as she already had something arranged to counter that.
"Well, lucky for us, I just happened to make reservations at the perfect place, and it's only at the most popular restaurant at Valor Lakefront. Come on, guys, follow me!" May stated. So without a moment to spare, she turned around and started to make her way off ahead. The others simply stared in surprise before they started to follow after her, figuring that it would be best to let her lead the way. As the group were walking, Ash managed to catch up with May as he started to walk beside her, and he turned his glance to find that their hands were just side by side, so he reached over to take May's hand in his. May turned her glance down in surprise to notice this, and then she looked up to see Ash showing her a bright smile, and she couldn't help but smile back.
'Wow… something really seems different about Ash from when I last saw him. What could it be, though? Well, whatever it is, I like it!' May thought to herself, feeling her smile growing brighter as she was starting to notice Ash's change in behaviour around her. She then turned her attention back to the road in front of her, deciding that maybe she should worry about it later.